The City of Greenswabs

The History of Greenswabs:
Timeline of the History of Greenswabs:

The original city of Greenswabs was first built in 51YE. It was intended to be as great a City State as Virdistan, the City State of the Invincible Overlord, and the City State of Tarantis but Greenswabs has never been lucky. Seventy years after the completion of the city in 1071YE the first of the Great Slave Raids by the Dark Elves began. Their attack on the city of Greenswabs left the city in ruins and it's population taken prisoner. It was rebuilt shortly thereafter by the World Emperor, but has never attained it's full glory.

Since then Greenswabs has had numerous ups and downs, the city was one of the first abandoned when the World Emperor started pulling troops back, it has burned to the ground numerous times, been both the target and the haven for pirates on more than one occasion, and been sacked by orcs and goblins at least four times. It's one shining moment came during the second of the Great Slave Raids in 2078 when an adventurer named, Wenster McNabe, was disturbed during his morning drinking by the appearance of the Dark Elves Black Ships. He was so annoyed that he led a counterattack that not only drove off the raiding Dark Elves, but managed to sink one of the magical Black Ships.

Through it all the only constant has been the enormous statue of Zaphod the Mighty. Created in honor of the first World Emperor, this giant statue is made of a hard white marble and stands well over 100' tall. It depicts Zaphod the Mighty facing east towards the Mistwall and shows several small children at his feet. The inscription on the base reads "For the Children". This statue still looks as good as new even though the city itself has been burned and sacked around it many times. So far, no one and nothing has managed to make a mark on this statue. The statue is located in the center of the Promise of Heaven park.

For the last 200 years Greenswabs has been governed by the "Will of the People", through an elected Governor. Rare among the cities of Wearth, this system provides for elections every 8 years with land owners and renters being able to each have a vote. The system of voting is complex. For, example a citizen who rents space, and has rented such space for at least 6 months, is entitled to 3/5's of a vote for every 50 square foot rented, if multiple people live in the space only the lease holder gets the vote. Merchants have another voting scheme as do the land owning nobles. The system has seemed to work, for the last 200 years has been one of the longest continuous governments Greenswabs has had in it's history.

Description of the City:

The city itself lies only 20 - 30 miles from the massive mile high Cliffface, along the River Newham. It is the only deep water harbor between Tarantis and Valon. The Cliffface make for late morning sun and the close proximity of the Mistwall to the Valley of the Ancients acts as a magnet to those seeking evil power.

Greenswabs survives on grain grown in the plains to the west and the fantastic fishing offered by the Winedark Sea. The fields to the north of Greenswabs are controlled by the city and patrolled regularly. Until recently what little trade existed came from the local towns and the Dwarf communities in the north. In the last hundred years though there has been increased trade with the Orclands, all of which flows through Greenswabs to other ports.

Greenswabs is about 1/2 mile long (720 meters) on the north-south axis, and is about 2/3 mile (1 kilometer) wide on the east-west. It is divided into several portions which are shown on the city map.

The major city is divided into three parts: Jewelers' Quarter, Processional, and Westside. The western border of Jewelers' Quarter is on Weavers Way and the Corridor of Steel. Upper class people live here, with rich shops and luxurious homes. They commonly hire private guards for their part of the city. We can define the rich as nobility who do not have a place in the palace, as heads and masters of guilds, as the more successful business people (no matter what their commodity), and as exiled foreigners who brought a bundle when they fled their homelands. Taverns here are not rowdy, and it is more likely that meetings will be held in private than in public. Even so, there is always the chance of trouble, especially if you are from another part of town.

The middle section is called Processional and its western border is Westgate Street. The town watch patrols here regularly, but people usually can't afford private guards. Many shop owners and workers have had some military service, and some of these businesses are owned by retired adventurers and mercenaries. Apartments are very common here and families are likely to live in a couple of rooms rather than owning their homes. Most permanent residents here are employees of people who own the shops here or in the richer part of town.

The west side of the city is called Westside and its borders are West-gate Street and the river. It is the poor side of town and a tough neighborhood avoided by people from the rest of the city. Part of this neighborhood is called The Maze, and is avoided even by residents of Westside! The Maze is the hangout of thieves, murderers, felons, and the very unlucky.

Other special areas are the Governor's Palace, where the city is ruled from; the Bazaar, where merchants gather and cultures mingle; the Street of Red Lanterns, an area of hedonism; the Avenue of the Temples, where the gods are worshipped; and, of course the Docks.

Downwind is across the river and is so utterly despicable that no one would live there who could avoid it. The buildings are fragile hovels and huts, and the residents are desperate or derelict. There is little to gain here. Even thieves avoid it.

As a way to understand the size of Greenswabs, we can measure the time needed to cross the city. At a dead run, an average runner would take about three minutes to dash from the dock up Processional to the front of the Governor's Palace. Likewise, it would take eight minutes to sprint from the Avenue of the Temples to the Swamp of Night Secrets. A galloping horse would halve those times. However, it is unlikely that anyone could make such a dash, either on foot or mounted, except at night when the streets are empty. And at night a runner would have to pass guardposts whose sentinels would take special interest in the motives of the runner.

The poorest workers are up and about before dawn. As the sun rises, the streets become more and more crowded. As the air warms, Street dust, the smells of cooking, and whatever odors emanate from local industry fill it, and another day is underway. Throughout the whole day, the whole of the squares and major streets would be very crowded. It would be impossible to run through such an area without continuously knocking people down. People normally move at a slow walk, though someone might move at a faster, skipping or sidling gait if they slid between and among people.

At the slower rate it would take at least 30 minutes to traverse from the docks to the palace, or 60 minutes from the Avenue of the Temples to the Swamp of Night Secrets. At the hastened pace it would take about half that time. Horses, by their bulk, can force their way through the crowd. Galloping horses will cause a panic, covering the streets with prone bodies, which would hamper even charging destriers.

Criers normally precede any official. The voice of the crier should warn people to move aside. The burly guards behind the crier will shove aside those who do not hear, to make way for their master's horse, sedan chair, or carriage. Smaller, less crowded streets also cross town, but though one can move faster, these streets tend to meander, making the total distance longer, and giving about the same total trip time as by a main street. It is more likely that someone can run or jog in these streets, though horses still would be held to a walk.

The crowds thin as darkness approaches. All good citizens try to be safely in their homes by dark. Again, the poor have the farthest to go and will be out the latest. After dark, few people venture out. The Downwinders creep forth to empty chamberpots and then bring their contents to tanners and farriers. Downwinders can be recognized by their overwhelming smell. The Nightwatch appears, though they are most likely to patrol the places where people pay them the best, they also will be found in the Processional section of town. They double as firemen as well as policemen. Thieves of all descriptions also find it useful to be out at night, creeping in shadows and across rooftops and through alleys, leaving the wide streets to the guardsmen and hapless innocents caught abroad.

Greenswabs people are a mixed lot. There are the Mycretian's from the days of the World Emperor, Atlantian's and Valon's who crew the trading ships, The Pokrants from the Uther Pentwergen Sea, and Karak's from the south.

There are obvious powers in the city. These include the Governor, who controls the official government; Gordonesh, the head of the temple of Pelor, Jubal, who is the unannounced king of the Underworld; Myrtis, queen of the Street of Red Lanterns, and Molin Torchholder, high priest and engineer of Pholtus. Unlike other large cities, Greenswabs has no official Guilds. When the "People's Government" came to power 200 years ago, the Guilds were strong and entrenched, with ties to Guilds in Tarantis and the CSIO. These powerful and corrupt Guilds were among the first things to go. There are some "unofficial" business groups, but no actual Guilds.

Page Last Updated Sunday, October 21, 2001